Sid Meier's Civilization V

[Kong Wen]

I know we have a lot of Civ players here. Raise your digital hands!

I was weaned on the Amiga version of the original Civ, and I haven't played much since Civ II. When I built my new PC last year, Kiwi's relentless achievement quest prompted me to try the newest entry out, and we put together a little group game with I think 4 players.

It would be fun to try to have another forum/group game with as many players as we can squeeze in! It can be a pretty chill game, as we have varying skill levels (I am still technically a complete newbie, having been destroyed by the AI players on easy mode...).

Who's interested in discussing and/or playing Civilization V?

[Kiwi the Tortoise]

Last time we had "Howling Mad" Turai & Dr. "Faceman" Allosaurus with us and played vanilla CivV.

Now we should all have the (excellent) add-ons and we really should get something started again.
As usual our problem will be finding time for it, since we live in different timezones.

I am in.

..having been destroyed by the AI players on easy mode...

Really?

[Niahak]

Definitely interested in discussing, but my schedule can be pretty unpredictable. I might be able to join in on a game at some point, though!

Liking Beyond Earth so far, but we'll see how well it keeps my attention. Opinions are divided on it so far.

[Turai]

Last time we had "Howling Mad" Turai & Dr. "Faceman" Allosaurus with us and played vanilla CivV.

Now we should all have the (excellent) add-ons and we really should get something started again.
As usual our problem will be finding time for it, since we live in different timezones.

I am in.

..having been destroyed by the AI players on easy mode...

Really?

All I remember was waging constant war against Allosaurus and screaming obscene german phrases complete with "THE THIRD REICH WILL RISE!" in the ear of everyone (I was playing germany). Was fun though, too bad we never continued it.

[Kong Wen]

Definitely interested in discussing, but my schedule can be pretty unpredictable. I might be able to join in on a game at some point, though!

Liking Beyond Earth so far, but we'll see how well it keeps my attention. Opinions are divided on it so far.

Most of the complaints I've heard are to the effect of it's basically a Civ V reskin/expansion. I don't really see that as too damning, though, considering 1) Civ V is excellent, and 2) Civ V's expansions really added to and altered the game, which makes me confident that Beyond Earth expansions will help the game find its footing & unique identity.

[DoctorAllosaurus]

I'd def be down, now that I have my own room it shouldn't be a problem staying up late.

[Niahak]

Most of the complaints I've heard are to the effect of it's basically a Civ V reskin/expansion. I don't really see that as too damning, though, considering 1) Civ V is excellent, and 2) Civ V's expansions really added to and altered the game, which makes me confident that Beyond Earth expansions will help the game find its footing & unique identity.

The changes are already much more substantial than G&K and BNW were, IMO. Most of the victory paths are somewhat nonlinear, although they all end in much the same way (build a wonder, then either interact some with it or wait). There are definitely some annoyances (trading units prompt you for new commands too often, for example) but I think a single balance/fix patch will be enough to make it hold my attention better.

It already has the one-more-turn feel, I'm just reluctant to start up new games until a bit more balancing happens.

[Jordan]

Civilization V is possibly one of my favorite PC games of all time. I've actually been playing it a lot lately. I like the game both with and without mods. I'm also so happy that they finally included sequential/hybrid in multiplayer as of BnW. I couldn't stand simultaneous turns, personally.

There are many Civs that I find enjoyable. China is great for me by default, but I also highly like playing Incans, Aztecs, Ethiopia and Huns. I think Incans are my favorite civ overall.

Civ V's expansions really added to and altered the game

This is so true! The game has improved exponentially since vanilla. In some ways, I can't even believe it. I liked a lot of the ideas from vanilla Civ V (city-states, the combat, social policies, etc.) but it felt so shallow. Now it really feels like there's tons of depth to the game.

[Kong Wen]

I am so bad at any Civ game past Civ 2. I think when we had our big multiplayer game with Kiwi, Turai, and DrAllosaurus, I got killed by one unit scouting my territory. My whole civilization wiped out. This is how I choose to remember it, anyway.

I'm glad to hear the expansions beefed up the game that much, though! I feel like I should play a few single-player/offline games to get used to everything before I try to play online again.

Jordan, please tell me you're planning on nominating some games for the Best Game Ever!

[Jordan]

Why not? I gave Civilization V a nomination along with a couple of others. It was tempting to nominate dozens of games, but I decided to focus on the ones which I got the most from.

Singleplayer definitely helps to learn the ropes. For one thing, the game gives you adviser pop ups which actually provide you with helpful hints as you play. It's also not a bad idea to try multiplayer teams versus AI teams. That can help you too because your friends can give you tips.